Khaled Almaeena
Much has been written about the Saudi action in Yemen. Many political analysts have given different views and there are many contradicting assessments of the present situation. However, the Kingdom has been very clear in its position and has taken a decisive stand after all hopes of diplomacy and requests for a return to normalcy and legitimacy were shunned by the Houthis. Unfortunately, the Houthis remain emboldened by what they perceive as the strength of Iranian support. They not only removed a democratically elected president and put him and several cabinet ministers under house arrest, but embarked on an invasion of the country. Yemen is an impoverished state with 52 percent of the people living below the poverty line. It cannot afford to be subject to the foolish antics of a bunch of illiterate highway robbers who are not only shortsighted but who carry out their actions to please their foreign master. Saudi Arabia watched and waited. It cannot afford to have an unstable, insecure neighboring country in which an irresponsible and greedy minority play with the fate of millions of Yemenis. As such, a decisive action was taken to attack the stronghold of the reckless and dangerous Houthis. Saudi Arabia took a stand after negotiations with several countries and after coordinating the appropriate line of action. The attack was never against the Yemeni people. It has always been a Saudi policy to have good relations with all Arab countries and to equally have secure and economically stable neighbors. But the events in Yemen were far from that. The Saudi government has been very assertive in its position. It should be very clear to all that this is not a sectarian war. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has stated that all Muslims are equal in the eyes of the Kingdom. Those in the media who are trying to distort the goal of this decisive action should take note that this is a political action and is based on the request of the Yemeni authorities. The goal of the Kingdom is not to destroy Yemen but to ensure a return to normalcy. It is up to the Yemenis to realize that people like Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Houthis and others who are playing with the lives of poor Yemenis are the real enemies of Yemen. The country cannot afford to go through further turmoil and engage in civil wars and political unrest. The majority of the Yemeni people want to lead a normal life. The decisiveness in the Saudi action will help them to do that. — Reprinted with permission of the Saudi Gazette and Khaled Almaeena. The writer is Editor-at-Large. He can be reached at kalmaeena@saudigazette.com.sa and followed on Twitter: @KhaledAlmaeena